As soon as he realized that his shot off Mohammad Abbas would reach the boundary line, he raised his hands in celebration. He then threw his bat in the middle of the pitch, raised both his hands and hugged his batting partner Taijul Islam. This was his 14th Test century in his 21-year career of 102 Test matches. Yet Mushfiqur found all this as fresh and emotional as the first time.
When Bangladesh resumed batting yesterday morning, Mushfiqur’s partner was captain Nazmul Hossain Shanto. Clouds were hovering over the sky and Pakistani bowlers presented a tough challenge. But Mushfiqur never lost control. Wickets fell at the other end and there was a slight altercation between Taijul and Shan Masood. None of this disturbed Mushfiqur’s concentration.
At the end of an over, Taijul was taking a little extra time before coming back on strike, which left the Pakistan captain looking upset. Masood told him, “Go bat.” Taijul replied, “It is not your job to decide when I should bat.”
Masood then moved towards Mushfiqur, perhaps hoping to break his concentration with a few words. After all, Mushfiqur was the biggest obstacle between the Pakistan and Bangladesh innings.